Agents, this story has been passed down for generations as a warning. Listen to the details, tell fact from fiction, and determine what may be responsible for its existence. You will have 20 minutes after the tape plays to respond with an explanation for the story and provide safety measures, if necessary, when dealing with real-world encounters. Your activity and response will be monitored.
Location: Welch, WV, USA
Approx. Date: Winter 1860
The day was still and a cloudy gray; large, fluffy snowflakes fell gently to the ground, painting the land in a shimmery white. Within the forest, only the sounds of branches creaking under their gathering weight and Lonnie’s boots crunching in the snow could be heard.
Pleased with the day’s hunt, Lonnie whistled on his way home, enjoying the serenity around him. He heard the snap of a branch and looked upwards; there sat a strange, mostly black bird. It turned to face him, scrutinizing from above with eerie, white eyes; it sang a familiar song, one that went, “who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all? ” The sound was off, sending shivers down his spine; it was then that Lonnie realized what the creature was: a death omen.
Though he did not think of himself as a superstitious person, Lonnie could not help feeling dread creep over him. He remembered stories his grandparents had told him—that if one heard an owl hoot, they’d die within the week by beast, man, or natural causes; some said the curse drove men mad, others that it attracted misfortune.
Out of the corner of his eye, Lonnie began seeing a shadowy thing; every time he turned to look, it disappeared. Behind him, small noises echoed; each minute, they sounded closer, heavier. The shadow grew taller, darker and his heartbeat louder, faster. He turned suddenly, sweat upon his brow, and yelled incoherently. Silence answered; yet, he could feel it there, nearby. The trees began to grow closer without moving. Feeling suffocated and pursued, Lonnie dropped his pack and rifle and sprinted ahead, looking behind him intermittently. The shadow grew nearer on the edge of his vision, but turning, he never spotted it behind him. He ran farther into the forest, losing sense of direction; a loud snap caught his attention. When he turned his head back to look, he missed the steep, rocky drop off that lay before him, tumbling below. Now the only sound that filled the woodlands was that of snow plopping onto the ground and the distant, muffled call of an owl.
[TAPE ENDS]
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